Video Production 101 Prepared by Bradley Knight Digital Media, UWC

Contents 3 Phases of Production Gear/equipment Terms Rules/conventions Camerawork basics Tips

Productions Phases

Pre-production Setting up shooting schedule Developing script and storyboards Location scouting Arranging permits Equipment requirements Collecting source material Finalising budgets/costs Assembling a crew

The Difference between Amateurs and Pros… Amateurs… Point and Shoot! Pros………. Plan and Shoot!

Post-production Non-linear (Digital) Editing Adobe Premier, Final Cut Pro, AVID Sound Post Export to tape, CD, DVD, iPod, Cellphone Compression for online/mobile use

What is a blonde? And a redhead?

Types of Lights Blonde 2000 watts Redhead 800 watts yellow red

What is a Dolly?

Dolly A cart that the camera and crew sits on to create smooth camera movement over uneven surfaces.

Boom mic. A microphone attached to a rod, and held close to the subject without getting into the shot.

Jimmy Jib A mini crane which creates high angle and low angle shots.

A Clapperboard/Slateboard Records all the vital info for the editor. (scenes, shots, takes,)

Reflector Board/Polyboard Used outdoors to reflect sunlight or lights onto the subject

Steadycam Operator Camera is harnessed to the body to create smooth, free movement without tracks.

Basic Terminology A shot is the amount of video you shoot from the second you press record to when you stop recording. Photo Album analogy A Shot

Different types of shots Extreme Wide Shot (E.W.S.) a.k.a Establishing shot To show surroundings, beginning of new scene, where the action is taking place.

Long Shot (L.S.) Closer to subject, but still places her in surroundings.

Wide Shot (W.S.) Subject takes up full frame with “safety room”.

Mid Shot (M.S.) Framed from waist to head. How you would see the person in casual conversation.

Medium Close Up (M.C.U.) Halfway between Medium Shot and Close Up. Shows head and shoulders.

Close Up (C.U.) Subject’s face (including neck) or other feature fills most of the frame.

Extreme Close Up (E.C.U) ECU shows extreme detail. Used to convey emotion.

Framing and Composition Framing A frame is the picture you see in the viewfinder or monitor. Composition Composition is the layout of everything in the frame-where it is in relation to everything else, the foreground and background, the lighting, the camera angles.

“Rule of Thirds” Imaginary lines which divide the picture into thirds Place your points of interest where the lines intersect

In a nutshell Except for people looking directly at the camera, place your point of interest either on or alongside the imaginary horizontal or vertical lines, or on 1 of the 4 Intersecting points. Rule of Thirds

Head room Head room is the space between the top of the subjects head and the top of the Frame. In pictures, HEIGHT = STRENGTH Less head room> Greater Strength Poor head room gives viewers an impression of weakness Good head room portrays confidence and strength.

Moving-room and Looking-room Amount of room in shot left empty to make shot look comfortable. Leaves space for the action or eye line.

Avoiding Mergers Tonal Merger Where objects blend together in a picture and lose their identity.

Dark hair blending into a dark background Solution Use a back light to separate the girl’s hair from the background. Frame the shot from another angle to change the dark background

Dimensional Mergers When different elements in your picture “run together” and looks odd. The Human eye sees in 3D. Cameras see in 2D. Tip! Close your one eye, and check your composition

Basic Camera Movements Pan - Turning left or right Tilt - Pointing camera up or down High angle - shot above eyeline, looking down on subject Low angle - shot below eyeline, looking up at subject

White Balance It’s a function which gives the camera a reference to “true white” It tells the camera what white looks like, and it records all other colours correctly. An incorrect white balance will show video with a blue or orange tint.

Good news! Most Consumer Cameras have Auto White Balance! Too blue Too yellow White-balanced

How to do a manual white balance Point the Camera at a pure white matte surface. Zoom in to fill the screen with “white” and set focus with dominant light source on the sheet. Press White Balance button. Camera will take a few seconds to white balance. Watch for WB icon to appear in viewfinder to confirm. N.B. Perform this function at the beginning of every shoot, and every time the lighting conditions change. eg inside vs outside.

Checklist Batteries charged? Spares? Tape stock? Use theTripod! Sea-sickness. Check focus (Auto) Check background (pot plant effect) Use headphones to monitor sound. Check to see if you are recording! (Red dot) White Balance your camera on location. Location scout beforehand. Need lights? Plugs? Take along the battery charger & extension lead.

Wash hands before handling camera. Keep lens cap on when camera not in use. If outside, shoot with your back to the sun. Shoot pre-roll. Press “Record” few seconds before and after shots.(5 sec) Audio Challenges For interviews, turn down background music or go somewhere else. Don’t shoot interviews in the wind, if possible. Tips

After the shoot Pack camera away in bag when not in use. Label your tapes and “record-proof” them! Remove tape and battery after the shoot.

Bad Habits… DON’T zoom all the time!!! DON’T shoot with effects. Add it in the edit. DON’T add date stamp. Home video. DON’T leave camera unattended in car or on tripod. DON’T leave camera on sand/beach. DON’T point the camera at a bright light source DON’T shoot subject in front of window during daylight DON’T touch the lens. Smudges.

Resources Quinn, Gerald V. The Camcorder Handbook. Blue Ridge Summit PA:TAB Books,1987 Ferncase, Richard K. Film and Video Lighting Terms and Concepts Newton MA: Focal Press,1994 Watkinson, John. An Introduction to Digital Video, MA: Focal Press, 1994 Mascelli,Joseph V. The Five C’s of Cinematography Silman-James Press, 1965

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Questions?